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Edinburgh taxi and private hire trade handed fresh chance to influence hotly debated vehicle cap as council launches overprovision survey
The City of Edinburgh Council has opened a public consultation on private hire car provision as part of an assessment that could determine whether restrictions on additional vehicle licences are justified.
The consultation opened on Tuesday 13 October 2026 and will close on 3 November. The council has confirmed that the assessment’s findings will be reported to its Regulatory Committee.
The exercise follows a campaign by representatives of Edinburgh’s taxi and private hire trades calling for an investigation into whether the capital has more licensed private hire cars than demand can support.
A petition considered by councillors in August 2025 sought an overprovision assessment under the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982. It also called for a possible cap on private hire car licences if the evidence supported restrictions.
The petition attracted 1,228 individual supporters and six businesses, according to the council’s official petition record.
Campaigners argued that the growth in private hire vehicle numbers was affecting drivers’ earnings, working hours and competition between the taxi and private hire sectors.
Their petition cited approximately 1,100 active black cabs and more than 3,000 private hire cars operating in Edinburgh at the time. Those figures were supplied by the petitioners.
The council’s Regulatory Committee considered the petition on 8 August 2025. Councillors subsequently agreed to commission an assessment of private hire car provision, although a proposed immediate pause on issuing additional licences was not adopted.
The latest consultation represents a further stage in that process, providing an opportunity for drivers, operators, passengers and other interested parties to contribute evidence.
Scottish licensing legislation gives councils discretionary powers to refuse new private hire car vehicle licences where they are satisfied that granting additional licences would create or worsen overprovision.
Under section 10 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, authorities considering such restrictions must examine both the number of private hire cars operating in the relevant locality and demand for their services.
The Scottish Government’s guidance also identifies passenger waiting times, vehicle accessibility, driver working hours and the viability of existing taxi services as factors that may inform an assessment.
Importantly, the overprovision provisions apply to applications for new private hire car vehicle licences. They do not provide a basis for refusing the renewal of an existing licence solely because the authority considers there are already too many vehicles.
Any decision to introduce restrictions would require supporting evidence and further consideration by the council.
Edinburgh already operates a policy limiting the number of licensed taxis, while private hire car numbers are not currently subject to an equivalent numerical cap. That distinction has been a longstanding concern among some representatives of the city’s licensed taxi trade, who argue that different licensing arrangements create competitive pressures.
However, restrictions on private hire car numbers could also affect passenger availability, particularly during periods of high demand.
Existing vehicle licence holders would not automatically lose their licences if an overprovision policy were introduced under the relevant statutory provisions.
